tion out of my hands being too much for the strength of the occupiers; and by the 31st of May all was finished.

During these operations, the sweet partner of all my cares and joys, and myself, had often conversed together on the propriety of making a visit to England; and having determined the matter, we now opened the subject to our brother and sister. They could not but acknowledge that we felt and judged rightly; and in a few days after, we convened the people, and told them of the necessity of my absence for a few months. On this occasion, several papers which had been drawn up, were now signed and delivered to the settlers; and their verbal compliance with the terms stated therein taken before the congregation, and a note made at the foot of each paper to that effect. I then gave my brother a commission as my lieutenant, which was read aloud to them; and I expressed my hope that the people would be governed by him as they had been by me, who, I was sure, would do every thing for their welfare and having appointed the following morning for a complete settlement of accounts with every individual of the colony, they were permitted to retire.

In a day or two after, all the accounts having been adjusted, I gave Diego a long interview; during which I expressed my attachment to him, promising him a mark of it at some future day, and desiring him and Rota to take charge of the house and plantation in my absence. I bade him look well after every thing, and to confer with my brother daily, giving him a report of proceedings. And I

enjoined him to improve the grounds about our plantation as much as possible; also, to lend assistance to my brother, or to any of the colonists, when required; and to exercise six of his men, as frequently as he had time, in the six-oared boat, so as to make a crew of expert rowers for me on my return; and that he must learn to steer me; and that I wished the sandy beach of Long Bay, at Edward's Island, where the sheep were grazing, to be planted with cocoa-nut trees; also, the front of Allwood's settlement with a double row of the Barbadoes palm, now growing in our nursery below the cotton-tree. I particularly told him to mind the progress of the settlers' crops, to instruct them in all matters thereon, and, as soon as they should get them in, to distribute the pigs among them; but, in the meanwhile, to feed the herd with our own produce. And if at any time he should discover that any of the people needed help in any way, to represent it to my brother, that it might be given; taking care at the same time not to encourage idleness, and to be watchful over the conduct of all persons, so that any irregularities, if they should arise, might instantly be repressed.

When I had done with Diego, I sent for Allwood, and told him I wished the mansion to be exactly doubled, by running up its counterpart at the back, so as to give us two halls and four bed-rooms as at Peccary Field; and when these were done, to surround the house with a lofty piazza, and to paint the whole a lemon colour, except the pillars of the piazza and window-shutters, which were to be green; and to let Manus prepare window-sashes, and glaze

them, ready to put in after my return. The details of this subject were now entered into, and the various points settled to Mr. Allwood's satisfaction and to mine.

I next sent for Hart, and gave him the last of the new houses built at Allwood's Bay; to which boon my kind Eliza added a suitable stock of poultry, and a she-goat with kid. This being arranged, I told Corporal Craig to take charge of the arms and ammunition; and I desired him to tell the soldiers I should expect them to take guard day and day about, from sunrise to sunrise, at the plank-house, which in future should be reserved entirely for that military purpose; and they were to have charge of the barrier gates, and storehouse, and boats, and canoes, near their post, and any stores or other things within their observation: and this was the duty they were to perform for the pay allowed them, being the same as king's pay. By these arrangements I hoped to guard against any bad individual, or individuals, that might be among us, or come among us, and my dear helpmate applauded my foresight; "the want of which," she said, "often exposes the foolish and the wicked to fall into a snare, which a little prudence and precaution might have prevented: and it is certainly better," continued she, "to prevent crime than to punish it."

After drill on Saturday, the 5th of June, accompanied by my brother and Captain Drake, and Allwood and Hart, not omitting my faithful and intelligent Diego, we walked down towards the rocks that form the sea line of the open ground before the mansion. Here I pointed out a position

within forty yards of the shore, where I proposed to erect a ten-gun battery en barbette. And after a little consultation with Drake, we marked out a line of 120 feet, nearly parallel to the beach, flanking it at either end with a line of sixty feet at an angle of 135 degrees. Along the whole extent of this line, I proposed a brick wall of five feet in height to be built; and a bank of sand extending from the summit of the wall outwards, in a sloping manner, to be made so as to form a curtain to the battery. This work being planned out, I took the occasion of the presence of these chief men of the colony, to impress them with all I expected from them in my absence; and, to do them justice, my address was met by a good spirit on all sides.

Sunday, 6th. We held a solemn festival to the Lord. And on the following day, my dear wife and myself, with our faithful little dog, together with our trunks, a box of fine shells, and the iron chest, (containing 1930 doubloons and 3800 dollars, besides the contents of the Spanish box of gold and silver articles,) embarked in the Porghee; attended by our brother and sister, followed closely by Diego and Rota, and all the people, who crowded round us before we could step into the boat; our older friends embracing our knees, or kissing our hands; and thus, with the blessings of our people, and the blessing of God, we sailed out of the Northern Channel, with a fine breeze from the east, for Jamaica.

CHAP. VI.

We had a long passage, owing to light winds; so that we did not arrive at Kingston until the 21st of the month. Our former lodgings having been sufficiently agreeable, and our brown landlady remarkably obliging, we were glad to find them unoccupied, and took up our residence as before. I was not now perplexed and overpowered with business, as on a former occasion, and therefore sat down very quietly with my dear wife, after our landing, to make ourselves comfortable. I invited Captain Drake to dinner; and we dressed with some little attention to the prevailing fashion of society: but I would not again submit to the torture of a friseur; and therefore, after arraying myself in an embroidered waistcoat, popped on my trusty Adonis over my father-Adam-like curls, and looked sufficiently, I suppose, like a modern fine gentleman. Drake was an excellent fellow, but had no pretensions to modish attire; indeed, he despised it, and never could see me in my wig without a smile: I also could laugh at myself when alone; but before others, not excepting Drake, I took care to preserve my gravity and self-possession, without which I knew all external marks of a superior quality would lose their value; and I had too much mother-wit not to have observed how much influence a grave countenance, under a well-dressed wig, has on society.